Paris, Sept 2, (dpa/GNA) – A 72-year-old pensioner went on trial in the southern French city of Avignon on Monday, for allegedly drugging his wife and having her raped by dozens of men.
Fifty other men have also been accused of taking part in the abuse. The offences are said to have taken place over a period of around 10 years.
The now divorced woman appeared in the courtroom, accompanied by her three children. She wanted to look the defendants in the eye, her lawyer told the TF1 channel.
The defendants, 18 of whom are in custody, are men who were between 21 and 68 years old at the time of the offences. According to the indictment, the pensioner made contact with them via an online platform for sexual contacts. He is not said to have demanded money from them.
Most of the accused have admitted the offences, the news channel France Info reported. However, a minority testified that they had not known that the victim had been drugged, and thought that she was only pretending to be asleep.
A defence lawyer representing six of the accused, said the men had assumed that the couple were playing sex games.
GNA